Psalm 16:8 – I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.

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Our church mission statement is: Apex Baptist Church is an authentic community of believers worshipping God EVERYWHERE we go, becoming more like Him EVERYDAY, and serving EVERYONE we meet.

We believe our mission statement comes directly from the Great Commission found in Matthew 28:19-20.

Our Mission Guides us. Our values define us.

Our values:

Intimacy with Christ

Missional Living

Ministry Excellence

Disciple-making community

Generosity

These values help us fulfill our mission of being a New Testament church.

When we think about generosity, most of us immediately think about money. We should be generous with our money, but generosity is not only limited to our cash. We should be generous with our time, our talents, our homes, our possessions, and our money.

The church functions because of generous people. People volunteer their time. People use their talents. People are hospitable to others at their homes. People invest their possessions in things that make an eternal difference. People support the church with their money.

The church gets its resources from the generosity of people. This is a gift that is held in high esteem and a responsibility that is not taken lightly. Financially speaking, the church budget is met through the faithful tithes and offerings of the people attending Apex Baptist.

Becoming generous with your money is the first step towards a lifestyle of generosity.

1. Generosity reveals what is important to you.

“Where your treasure is, there your heart is also.” Matthew 6:21

2. Generosity prevents materialism.

“Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.” 1 Timothy 6:17-18

3. Generosity strengthens your faith.

“Honor the Lord with your wealth… then your barns will be filled to overflowing…” Proverbs 3:9-10

4. Generosity demonstrates your obedience

“Will a person rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, ‘How do we rob you?’ In tithes and offerings.” Malachi 3:8

Our church mission statement is: Apex Baptist Church is an authentic community of believers worshipping God EVERYWHERE we go, becoming more like Him EVERYDAY, and serving EVERYONE we meet.

We believe our mission statement comes directly from the Great Commission found in Matthew 28:19-20.

Our Mission Guides us. Our values define us.

Our values:

Intimacy with Christ

Missional Living

Ministry Excellence

Disciple-making Community

Generosity

These values help us fulfill our mission of being a New Testament church.

A few days ago I received a letter encouraging me to join the alumni association at one of the universities I attended. One of the perks of membership was the privilege to audit a class for free. When you audit, you attend the class but do not have to do any of the work and it does not become part of your permanent academic record. You are exposed to the thought, but do not have to work like the rest of the students in the course to get a passing grade and continue toward graduation.

It may be a perk of an alumni association to audit a course on campus, but it is a travesty for people to simply audit the Christian faith. BUT IT HAPPENS! The solution is a community of believers built upon disciple-making.

A disciple-making community is a family on mission. It is a group of believers who desire to live centered on the Gospel of Christ and encourage each other as they pursue Him together.

In 2 Timothy 2:1-6, the Apostle Paul, writes to Timothy instructing him about making disciples.

You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus,and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops.

Four pillars we are trying to build a disciple-making community upon are found in this passage.

1. Developing Leaders.

Having just shared his disappointment over the growing apostasy spreading through Asia, Paul turned to Timothy and wrote, You then, my child, be strong. Sometimes difficult circumstances, our own weaknesses and fears, and the negative attitudes or unfaithfulness of others determine our course in life. Developing leaders takes intentionality, effort and encouragement and it helps us understand what God sees in us, not what we see in ourselves. It, always, happens best in community.

2. Focus on the Main Thing.

A disciple-making community is marked by holiness and perseverance. This is only possible if we stay focused on the main thing. The main thing being glorifying God with our lives. The main thing being living centered on the Gospel. Paul used the analogy of a soldier. A soldier expected hard times. They trained for hard times. They met hard times face to face and persevered through them. A good soldier does not try to escape hard times or look for the path of least resistance. He carries out his mission through the difficulties by staying focused on the main objective instead of the obstacles to accomplishing the main thing.

3. Discipline.

Paul uses the example of an athlete to show us the discipline it takes to excel in a disciple-making community. Like a relay team, each member of a disciple making community is valuable and important to the team. There are rules and there are requirements by which every competition is governed. We are to be disciplined by the Word of God to develop into a disciple-making community.

4. Faithful Service.

Finally, Paul uses the example of a farmer to teach Timothy about the priority of faithful work. A disciple-making community does not spring up overnight. It takes time, care, energy and effort. This is a worthwhile effort because the church will grow more and more healthy as a disciple-making community is established. Just like farmers have to do more than plant, water, and harvest, A disciple-making community must go through daily battles to produce fully devoted followers of Christ.

These four pillars will not be easy to establish, but through the faithful efforts of many men and women, we can establish a biblical community consistently making disciples at Apex Baptist Church